AT&T rolls out Hulu-esque service

The push to bring mainstream broadcasting to the Internet continues, as AT&T rolls out a site that follows the lead of services like Hulu and Fancast. In fact, some of the bodies behind Hulu are providing content for the carrier's new endeavor, which it calls AT&T Entertainment.

The service hosts free TV shows and movies from ABC, CBS, NBC, Bravo, Oxygen, Syfy, the CW, and USA Networks among others. Naturally, "free" means that advertisements accompany videos, just like Hulu. After poking around on the site for about ten minutes, there doesn't seem to be a significant library of content -- but that will change.

"The site will grow and evolve to make more content available to consumers in new and better ways," said Dan York, an AT&T exec. York added, "customers want to be able to access their favorite content anytime, anywhere." Because of that, Hulu and its imitators are an increasing danger to media conglomerates.

Industry leaders recognize this threat, with companies like Time Warner Cable and DirecTV beginning to test online broadcast models. As businesses adapt to this new medium, I presume there will be a mounting attempt to exploit it for monetary gain. Where do you think the Internet will be in five years?